


Of Flowers and Tattoos

by historyoflight



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop & Tattoo Parlor, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, Florist Allura, Fluff, Klance if you squint, Romance, Tattoo Artist Shay, everyone is aged up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-01
Updated: 2017-08-01
Packaged: 2018-12-09 14:48:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,751
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11671254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/historyoflight/pseuds/historyoflight
Summary: Allura works at the local flower shop but has dreams of becoming a tattoo artist. Shay works at the tattoo parlor and dreams of becoming a florist. A little switcheroo seems to be in order.





	Of Flowers and Tattoos

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! This is for day 1 of Voltron WLW month. The prompt was flowers so of course I had to do a florist and tattoo artist AU, with my own little spin on it. Hope you enjoy, and feedback is always appreciated!

Allura walked up to the door and took out her key ring. She took a step back, breathing in the sweet scent of the flowers and looked up at the lavender sign above. Written in a familiar curly script read the words _Flowers From Altea_ , denoting the business left in the hands of the girl below it. She looked for a second longer then walked inside the shop, the little bell above the door ringing as she entered.

She was greeted by her lovable uncle Coran, who was setting up the register. The flower shop ultimately was entrusted to Allura but she was still too young to look after it alone, so for the time being Coran handled a majority of the more involved aspects of it.

“Mornin’ Allura!” Coran said, “sorry I didn’t text you I was coming in early. I had to get ahead start on that big order I was talking about and I thought I’d let you get your beauty sleep.”

“Thanks. I don’t know if I look more beautiful but at least I’m not sleep deprived.”

“Oh stop you always look lovely. Now could you finish getting the store ready? I need to put the final touches on that order before the customer gets here.”

“You got it!”

With that Allura went behind the register and Coran went into the back room. She made sure that the money was in order, then reached under the counter to get the clipboard to take inventory. It was a menial task but a necessary one, making sure that they didn't need to order anymore orchids or had run out of roses. It was also during this time that Allura allowed her mind and eyes to wander across the street to the adjacent shop.

Ever since she was little she had been groomed to one day take over the family flower shop. Some of her earliest memories involved her and her father walking through the local park, him pointing out the different kinds of flowers along the way. Despite all those years of learning, all those years of thinking this was what she had to do, there was always a part of her that felt dissatisfied. Allura’s mind and body might have belonged to the store but her heart belonged to another passion: art.

Drawing had been the one thing that brought fulfillment into her life. Creating something from just a pencil, piece of paper, and her brain gave her something that all the flowers in the world could not. That feeling of seeing your own work realized was as addictive as any other, and that feeling was what brought Allura’s eyes across the street. Because she knew that over there she could have her draws realized in ways she could only dream of. But alas she, and her dreams of working at the tattoo parlor were stuck here, drowning in the suffocating scent of the freshly delivered hydrangeas.

If only she knew that at the very tattoo parlor she stared at so often there was another girl thinking the same thing.

Shay was standing behind the register inside _Balmeran Tattoos_ ringing up a customer. He was counting out his money, so Shay took the opportunity to glance out the window towards the quaint flower shop across the street. Oh how she wished she had the courage to quit this place and venture over there, but she had formed a nice community here and had a knack for the job. So she stayed, sketching tattoos and making creations on to whoever was in her chair…

“A-hem.” The customer cleared his throat, bringing Shay back from her trance. He was holding out the money, seemingly for a little while, and she quickly apologized before completing the transaction. He left, and not a second later Hunk walked over to talk.

“Man that guy was a riot! He was telling me how he lost a bet to his friends and had to get a tattoo of his dog on his back, can you believe it?” He let out a laugh that always made Shay feel better, if only for a moment.

“So,” Hunk continued, ”that butterfly tattoo you did yesterday was really cool. The lady posted it on Facebook and tagged the shop so I asked Pidge to put it on the website. You’ve got a real talent Shay!”

“Oh, thank you Hunk!” Shay said, “It was just a little design, you’re very good at large scenes, like that sky piece you did last week.”

They chatted a little more before Hunk went back to his chair to get ready for his next customer. Shay sighed, resting her head in her hand and slouching behind the counter. This was exactly why she couldn’t leave the store: she would miss her friends too much. As the front door opened once more she swore she caught the scent of freshly cut flowers, giving her a reminder of the what-ifs that lay just outside. She took out a piece of paper and pencil and sketched a quick design. It was a white willow, hints of purple sprinkled on the petals and drops of morning dew falling off like teardrops.

* * *

It was 1 o’clock, which meant it was time for a much needed lunch break. For some reason Allura just couldn’t focus on her work; the call of the tattoo parlor seemed to be particularly strong today. Because of this she was forced to bring her work with her to her usual lunch spot, _The Black Lion_.

She plopped her stuff down at a table on the left and got in line. A few minutes later she saw the familiar face behind the counter.

“Lance! How are you?,” Allura said, “Usually you're the one making my sandwich not taking my order.”

“Yeah it's a change for me to,” the boy said, “but Keith decided he wanted to try making the food and Shiro’s doing whatever in the back so I can't make him switch us.”

“Would you _really_ make Keith return to taking orders when he looks so content back there?” Lance turned around to look at the other worker, who had a small smile on his face as he prepared a customer’s order. When Keith looked up to meet the other’s gazes Allura smiled while Lance waved, causing Keith to frown and look away.

“Classic Keith,” Lance said, “we have a competition going to see who makes the best sandwiches. Of course it's me but I'm giving him a running chance. So the usual I assume?”

“Yes please. After the day I've had, I need this.”

Lance placed her order and handed her a metal stand with a number on it. She said goodbye and went back over to the table cluttered with paperwork. A man had come in wanting to purchase a bouquet for his wedding anniversary, which happened to be today (clearly he hadn't planned ahead). So now Allura was stuck trying to figure out which combination of flowers would get the message across while also looking nice, all by 4 o’clock. On the paper she had written down possible options and sketched what they would look like.

_Now Option 2 is nice but I'm afraid that the roses are going to clash with the magnolias. Maybe if I take Option 3, switch the marigolds with violets… no that won't look right. What about Option 5, or Option 1, or-_

_“_ Excuse me?” Allura snapped out of her crisis for a moment to see a tall girl with golden eyes standing next to her. She had a look of concern on her face, which turned into embarrassment when Allura didn't answer her- only stared.

“Oh! I’m sorry to interrupt you!” the girl said.

“N-no no it's ok! I was just lost in my work for a second,” Allura replied.

“That's actually why I came over. You seemed stressed and I wanted to see if I could help in any way.”

“Well, thank you for the kind gesture but unless you know about flowers I'm afraid-”

“Wait do you work at _Flowers From Altea?”_ The girl was smiling wide and her eyes crinkled. Then, realizing she interrupted, put a hand over her mouth.

“Sorry, it’s just... I've always wanted to work there. Flowers are kind of a second hand passion of mine. When I'm not sketching tattoo designs I-”

Now it was Allura’s turn to interrupt.

“You work at _Balmeran Tattoos_? It's my dream to work there. Whenever I get bored at the shop I draw some designs, it's my own little destresor.”

Both girls were so busy buzzing about their passions that they didn't notice Keith standing behind them holding Allura’s and the girl’s orders. He had been standing there for the better part of a minute, not wanting to intrude on their conversation. At this point he decided he had been waiting for long enough, so he politely tapped Allura on the shoulder and informed her that her sandwich was ready. The girl started to walk away but Allura stopped her and invited her to sit down. Keith then placed the two meals, took the metal stands, and made his way back to the kitchen.

“My name is Shay by the way,” Shay said, extending her hand.

“Mine’s Allura.” She reached out and accepted the handshake, then continued their conversation.

It was the best lunch break Allura’s had in awhile. Usually she ate alone with the occasional Lance appearance, burying her nose in her phone or the occasional book. This though, this small event, brought life into her drab daily routine. Shay was amazing, a silver lining bursting through the clouded sky. She even helped Allura sort through the option of the anniversary bouquet, surprising the florist with her knowledge.

Too soon it was time for both girls to get back to work. Allura thanked Shay for helping her with her work, and Shay in turn thanked her for eating lunch with her. The two exchanged numbers and promised to keep in touch in case they needed problem solving again in the future. They headed for the door, but then Allura remembered something. She went back over to Lance behind the counter and proclaimed:

“By the way, I think Keith’s sandwich edged out yours as the best.” The look of shock on the boy’s face was priceless. Allura walked away laughing as Lance abandoned his post to go figure out what kind of magic made Keith’s sandwiches better.

“What was that?” Shay asked when Allura returned.

“Oh just a lover’s quarrel. Don’t worry, by tomorrow they’ll be over it.” Shay laughed at that, and Allura swore it was the most beautiful sound she’s ever heard. With that they walked out the door and parted ways, the florist going across the street and the tattoo artist going a few doors down. The latter snuck a glance back just in time to see a mess of white hair walking into the flower shop. She smiled to herself: _I guess everything in that store is pretty_.

Later that night as Allura was lounging around in her apartment an idea struck her. It was a longshot, but with some convincing it just might work. It was the only way for her to get out of that flower shop without burdening Coran or disappointing her father. She whipped out her phone and wrote out a draft of a text message, trying to properly convey her thoughts. Once she deemed it acceptable, she copied it and sent it to Shay. She didn’t respond right away, and for those few minutes Allura was left in a puddle of nerves, self-doubt, and sweat.

After what felt like an eternity the phone lit up to reveal a new text. Allura took a deep breath and read it, her anxiety quickly turning into happiness. She continued texting for longer than expecting, for she just felt the words coming easy to her when talking with Shay. Soon it was turning into the A.M and they forced themselves to stop so that they could get a good night’s sleep for work the next day. If all went well it would be an eventful day, one that both girls had been waiting for since before they met. Dreams of flowers and tattoos were about to become reality.

* * *

The next morning the sound of the phone alarm echoed through the silent apartment, but Allura had already been awake for about an hour. In fact she barely slept at all, her running thoughts keeping her tossing and turning all night. Despite an obvious lack of sleep she had an unusual amount of energy that allowed her to get ready for the day quicker than ever. She grabbed everything she might need and headed out to make her way to her and Shay’s meeting spot: _The Black Lion_.

When she arrived Shay was already standing outside. She was wearing a flowy fuchsia dress with a light yellow belt, a very different look from Allura who was wearing a royal blue shirt with ripped black jeans. They wouldn’t admit it, but both of them were trying to act the part. They also wouldn’t admit that they thought the other girl looked nice.

“Hello Allura! Are you ready for today?” Shay asked as Allura approached.

“Ready as I’ll ever be I guess. You?” Allura responded.

“Yes, I think so! Thank you for giving me this opportunity.”

“Well, don’t thank me yet. First let’s go talk to Coran.”

With that they began making their way across the street to _Flowers From Altea_. Shay started to become very nervous: what if Allura’s uncle wouldn’t let her in? Allura saw the anxious look on Shay’s face and stopped before walking in.

“Hey,” she began, “don’t be scared. Once I tell Uncle Coran how skilled you are he’s sure to let you work here. If you get nervous just know that I’ll be right next to you the whole time, and I’m going to do everything I can to make your dream come true.”

She took both of Shay’s hands, giving a smile and a gentle reassuring squeeze. Shay immediately smiled back, hoping Allura didn’t notice the pink slowly rising in her cheeks. Allura then let go and opened the door to the shop, the smell of flowers creating a sweet aroma all around.

“Uncle Coran?” The man in question came out from the back room carrying a small pot of hydrangeas.

“Yes, oh who’s this?” he replied, placing the pot on the counter.

“That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about. This is Shay.” Allura motioned to Shay and Shay did a small wave towards Coran.

“Shay works at Balmerian Tattoos,” Allura continued, “but she also has a lot of knowledge about flowers. She helped me fill out the order the other day for that anniversary bouquet, which you told me was one of the best things I’ve done in awhile. She’s actually wanted to work here for a long time, and you know how I’ve wanted to pursue my art for awhile now. So… what I’m proposing is… that the two of us switch jobs for the day.”

There was a moment of silence after Allura finished. She tried to read Coran’s face, to see how he was processing everything. After a few seconds Coran walked to the counter and picked up the hydrangeas, placing them in Shay’s hands.

“Well if Allura trusts you then I do too. I’ll teach you the ins and outs of the shop, starting with where to put this here pot.”

Shay’s expression turned from shock to pure happiness. She quickly thanked Coran for letting her do this, then turned to do the same for Allura. She pulled the other girl into a big hug -still holding on to the pot- and now it was Allura’s turn to turn pink. Shay finally let go, gave Allura one last look, and walked over to Coran to wait for further instruction. The other girl was about to leave when her uncle gave her a look. There was no malice nor disappointment, just acceptance and reassurance. Allura ran over and gave him a hug, saying a final “thank you” before walking out the door.

“You should’ve known you couldn’t keep her here,” Coran whispered into the air.

“So Sir, where do I start?” Shay asked, bringing his attention back to reality.

“Well first off you can call me Coran. Now, let me teach you the age old technique of floral organization. It all started about 20 years ago…”

About the same time Shay was being subjected to Coran’s rant, Allura was being introduced to her new co-workers. There was Hunk, the other main tattoo artist besides Shay, and Pidge, who handled all the tech aspects of the business. They assured her that the boss, Rax, had been informed of the switch and allowed it; it probably helped that Rax and Shay were siblings, but Allura didn’t need to know that.

Hunk asked how much experience she had, and she sheepishly admitted that she had never done a tattoo on a person before. Sure she had worked on fruit with a cheap tattoo gun she bought off Amazon, but she knew it was nothing like the real thing. Hunk looked in surprise for a minute, then went to the back without a word. _Great_ , she thought, _he’s going to tell me to leave before I get to show my work_.

He came back a minute later with an orange in his hand, tossing it to Allura.

“Look, I can’t let an inexperienced artist work on real customers. First, do a design on this, then maybe I’ll let you do a person.”

It was a reasonable request, and Allura took it in stride. She broke out her sketchbook and picked one of her newest designs: a collection of sapphire crystals of different sizes and shapes drawn together with a green ribbon. Hunk brought her over a spare tattoo gun, telling her “ _orange_ you glad you’re here?” Pidge loudly groaned from her desk and Allura was torn between laughing and throwing the fruit at her new friend.

The orange was her greatest challenge yet. In the past she had practiced on larger fruit like honeydew, but this was a much squishier surface. Nonetheless, if this is what it would take to prove herself she wasn’t going to complain, so for the next hour and a half she fully committed herself to the project.

Once she finished she showed it to Hunk in order to gain his approval. He looked it over for awhile, studying it like an art piece in a museum, before giving her a thumbs up. Allura breathed a sigh of relief; now she could finally show off her skills. The only problem was that the rest of the clients for the day were regulars so Hunk didn’t want to tarnish the store’s reputation by letting a newbie tattoo them. Hunk apologized, for he really was sorry that he couldn’t help out Shay’s friend, but he offered her to be his apprentice of sorts. It was the best she was going to get, so she agreed and went over to Hunk’s station to start her “training.”

Being an apprentice was rather boring and she found herself looking out across the street to the flower shop. Funny, she was in the place that she wanted to be for so long, yet now that she was here she felt a strange pull back to her roots. She texted Shay to see how things were going there. She got back a couple pictures of the other girl and Coran along with the message “having a great time!”

The first picture was of Coran lifting a heavy pot over to the display window, his face caught in an expression of pain while trying to seem fine. The second picture was a selfie of Shay and Coran next a shelf that Allura assumed they had just restocked. The last picture was just of Shay behind the counter, her hands around a bouquet and her smile radiant. Allura found herself staring at that picture, noticing the little details like how the lighting brought out Shay’s eyes, or how the colors of the flowers complemented Shay’s dress, or how-

“So what’s going on over here?” Allura jumped, only to see Pidge standing right behind her.

“I-um- nothing? How long have you been standing there?” Allura asked.

“Long enough to see that you’re _definitely_ not doing nothing.” Pidge smirked and glanced over at the phone.

“Well.. it’s certainly none of your business if I was or was not doing something.”

“Look you can dance around it all you want but I know a crush when I see one.” Allura felt knots in her stomach at that word.

“I know it’s none of my business but I want to give you some advice. You just have to go for it. Shay’s a great girl and you clearly like her, so why not give it a go? Maybe buy her some flowers, she loves flowers. Or give her a tattoo… no that’s too much. My point is you’ll never know if she likes you if you never ask. The worst she could say is no, which would be pretty bad but at least you’d know.”

“I… I guess you’re right, thank you. By the way, how do you know so much about asking out girls?” Pidge just pulls out her phone revealing a lesbian pride flag sticker and a “what’s a cis” sticker.

“Fair enough,” Allura said, “well I should probably get back to work now.”

“Oh that reminds me,” Pidge said, “the reason I came over here was to tell you you could take your lunch break. So yeah, have fun with that.” She walked back over to her desk, leaving Allura in a state of stark realization. After tidying up she grabbed her things and started walking towards _The Black Lion_ , texting Shay to come meet her.

It was less crowded than usual, probably because she was here a half hour later. She easily found a table then went over to Lance at the counter to place her order. He gave her a bit of a hard time after the whole “Keith makes better sandwiches” thing but after a few sarcastic comments everything was fine.

By the time Allura got back to the table Shay was just walking in. They waved to each other as Shay put her stuff down at the table and went up to order. Allura sat down, Pidge’s words coming in her mind. _Should I just ask? Maybe it’s too soon… I don’t want to ruin the friendship we have_.

Shay came back over, only causing Allura to feel more conflicted. She started talking about all the things she had been doing at the flower shop. Stocking the shelves and making the bouquets were fun; repotting the flowers was not. She recounted how Coran repotted a bunch of lilies and accidentally spilled dirt all over his clothes. They both laughed at that, especially Allura since she knew that that was a regular occurrence.

Allura then started telling her what she had been doing, trying to sound as enthusiastic despite not having much to say. The other girl could see the disappointment in her eyes, and she felt terrible that it wasn’t working out. Instinctively she reached out her hand in an effort to place it over Allura’s for comfort, but realizing what she was doing she pulled away.

“Silly Hunk, I’ll bet that orange looked amazing,” Shay said, trying to cover up her actions.

“Thanks,” Allura said, “I do understand where he’s coming from. Customer loyalty is important, and I guess having the new girl work on a regular wouldn’t be good for business.”

“Well, what if a non-regular came in? Hunk would have to let you tattoo them.”

“Yeah, the only problem is everyone who’s coming in today is a regular. I guess I’ll have to hope for a walk-in.” Just as she finished saying that Keith came over to the table with the girls’ orders. The gears in Allura’s mind started turning, then the light bulb moment came.

“Keith! You’ve been wanting to get a tattoo for awhile right?” Allura asked excitedly.

“Uh, yeah,” Keith said, “how’d you know that?”

“Lance told me over text once. Listen, could you get off work and come over to Balmerian Tattoos, preferably today?”

“I… I guess I could try? We’re not that busy now so Shiro might let me leave early.”

“Great! Text me when you’re coming and I’ll have everything ready.”

“Do I even have your number…”

“Here I’ll give it to you. Now when you go in make sure to request Allura, got it?”

Allura wrote down her number on a napkin and handed it to Keith. He took it and walked away looking slightly confused. Allura, on the other hand, was ecstatic. She was finally going to give someone a tattoo! Her excitement was contagious and Shay started feeling it too. Allura had never looked so happy, and Shay loved it.

The two ate their lunch and talked some more about their new jobs. Once again time seemed to fly by and they had to return to work. They walked out together, Shay crossing the street and Allura walking down the block. She felt more confident than ever, knowing she was being given the chance to show her skills. This was her big break, and there was no way in hell she was going to screw it up.

* * *

 6 o’clock. Literally an hour until the tattoo parlor closed and Keith showed up. Allura had given up on him long before, thinking he either forgot or blew her off entirely. When he stepped into the store she didn’t recognize him for a minute. When she did, however, Keith felt her full wrath. It was a one-sided screaming match in the middle of the store, and it didn’t take long for Hunk to come and break it up. Allura tried to explain what was going on, but even she had a hard time justifying yelling at someone for wanting to get a tattoo.

The situation defused within a few minutes and Keith started the process of getting his tattoo. When he told Hunk that he wanted Allura to do it Hunk was a little confused; why did he want the girl who just screamed at him to be in charge of putting a permanent piece of art on his body? Keith told Hunk that a friend recommended her to him, which also raised some questions but if he trusted her then Hunk saw no reason to refuse.

Allura set up shop at Shay’s station, sending a quick text to her to update her on the situation. A “Good luck!” message popped up with a few emojis, making Allura’s heart flutter just a bit. Keith sat down in the chair, feeling nervous and excited at the same time about getting his first tattoo. It’s something he’d wanted to do for years, he just needed a little extra push.

“Hey, I’m really sorry about before,” Allura apologized, “I was just worried that you bailed on me. It was inappropriate and it won’t happen again.”

“It’s fine, not the first time I’ve been in trouble for being late,” Keith said, “one time i come in late for work. Let me tell you Shiro is _not_ someone you want to see mad. Anyway, for the tattoo here’s what I was thinking.”

He pulled out a picture on his phone of a strange symbol. It was a bluish-purple and unlike anything Allura’s ever seen.

“Yeah it’s a funny symbol,” Keith explained, “but it’s the only real tie I have to my past. It’s on a Swiss Army knife I’ve had ever since I was a kid, and I think it belonged to my mother. I figured since it’s the one connection between me and my parents why not get it tattooed on me forever?”

“I know how you feel. My father… passed away when I was young. I’ll make sure to do this tattoo right.” Allura studied the symbol for a moment and got out the colors to match the picture. Keith rolled up his right sleeve so Allura could work on his upper arm.

“You ready?” Allura asked.

“Yup. Let’s do it.”

The process began. Allura had gone into it with a lot of confidence but she would be lying if she said she wasn’t nervous. If she messed this up Keith would have to live with a crappy representation of his heritage forever. She would never forgive herself. Despite the risks she worked hard and it didn’t take long to finish the symbol.

It looked exactly like the picture with a bit more life, but the more Allura looked at it the more she felt like something was missing.

“Keith, would you mind if I added on to this? I think I know how to make it special.”

“If you say so, go for it.”

The creative juices started flowing as she scrambled to get the right tools for the job. She did a quick sketch of her idea to get a reference, then started tattooing. This was where her skills shined: the use of colors, the design, and the emotional aspect created the perfect storm.

Within the hour the tattoo was done. Keith barely moved the whole time (thankfully for Allura’s sake), too lost in his thoughts to think about the pain. Here came the moment of truth when Allura brought him over to the mirror to look at her creation. She held her breath as she watched Keith react to it. Keith tentatively looked at his reflection, and when he saw the tattoo he just smiled.

The end result was a small knife. The bottom was dark brown except for a small black circle that contained the light blue symbol, glowing a brilliant purple. There was a thin crimson ribbon wrapping around the knife, fraying into three distinct sections just above the point. It was better than Keith could’ve ever hoped.

“Wow this is amazing! I thought just the symbol was going to be cool, but this is way better.”

“This is going on the website.”

Out of nowhere Pidge came up with a camera demanding a picture. She took a closeup and one where Allura was pointing at her work, then proceeded to upload both. She also sent them to Shay, unbenounced to Allura, with the caption “I guess she’s good.”

Not 15 minutes later Shay came bursting through the door, eager to see the new tattoo in person. She went over to Keith to examine his arm, and she immediately gave her praises to Allura.

“This is so cool! The design is really unique, and the colors are so vibrant. I can’t believe this is your first tattoo!”

“Oh-uh thank you! But wait, how’d you know to come now?”

“Oh, Pidge texted me.” Allura looked at Pidge, who just winked at her. _So I see. Well, if you’ve given me this opportunity I guess I should take it_.

“If you all don’t mind I’m going to take a walk for a minute. All this excitement is giving me a minor headache. Shay, do you want to come with me?” Shay agreed, not sure why she was invited to come but nonetheless wasn’t going to turn down spending time with her. The two left the tattoo parlor and started walking down the block.

The air outside was cool and the sun had just started it’s descent. The walk was quiet; Allura’s thoughts were racing too much to think about small talk. Maybe she shouldn’t have acted so rash. Maybe she was thinking too hard about what Pidge had said. Maybe she was about to make a fool of herself in front of the girl she liked. It was a high risk high reward situation, and at this point it was too late to turn back.

They had just walked past _The Black Lion_ , the place where they had first met, the place where Allura decided this had to happen.

“Shay.” Allura stopped walking and turned to face her. “These past couple days have been pretty crazy. I never would’ve thought that I’d be given the opportunity you’ve given me.”

“I could say the same thing to you,” Shay said, “working at the flower shop has been my dream, and now it’s my reality!”

“I’m so glad I could help you with that. I’ll be honest, I have no idea what the future for either of us is. A part of me will always be tied to the shop, and I don’t know how long our little switcheroo will last.”

“I understand. I think deep down I know that it is not permanent, but even if it is only for today I will still be forever grateful for the experience.”

“You know… even though these jobs may be temporary… our… relationship… doesn’t have to be.” The words hung in the air for a second, their weight hitting both of them.

“I-I like you Shay. I understand if you don’t feel the same I just needed to get it out there. If you don’t want to be friends anymore I under-”

“I like you too Allura.”

Allura looked at her in shock, while she just looked back with a smile. They both erupted into a fit of happy laughter, relieving all the nervousness they felt. In the midst of their celebration Shay picked up Allura and spun her around, then placed her back on the ground while holding her hands.

“So, now what?” Shay asked.

“I don’t know, but there’s a really good ice cream place a short walk from here and I’ve got cash.”

“I’d love to go, but you don’t have buy it for me.”

“Well what kind of a girlfriend would I be if I didn’t?”

Shay beamed at that word as Allura lead the way to the ice cream shop. She never would’ve have expected this to happen, to have her dream come true and have the girl she liked like her back all in the same week. The future of the girls’ careers was still up in the air, but for the moment it didn’t matter. As they walked down the block Shay swore she could smell the distinct scent of violets around them. Or maybe that was just her imagination.


End file.
